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Little-Known Second Verses of 10 Children's Songs

Either I had a really short attention span as a kid and never made it past the first verse of a song (which is entirely possible), or there are some obscure lyrics to the songs we all know and love. Here are a few of them.

1. I'm a Little Teapot.
"I'm a clever teapot,
Yes it's true
Here let me show you
What I can do
I can change my handle
And my spout
Just tip me over and pour me out!"

2. Do Your Ears Hang Low? I'm impressed that a children's song contains the word "semaphore."

Do your ears hang high?
Do they reach up to the sky?
Do they droop when they are wet?
Do they stiffen when they're dry?
Can you semaphore your neighbour with a minimum of labour?
Do your ears hang high?

3. My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean involves terrifying nightmares:

Last night as I lay on my pillow
Last night as I lay on my bed
Last night as I lay on my pillow
I dreamed that my Bonnie was dead

4. Oh My Darling Clementine. I didn't know anything beyond the "Oh my darling" chorus, but there's a whole little tale that goes along with the tragic Clementine. It goes like this (I'm leaving out the chorus, though):

In a cavern, in a canyon,
Excavating for a mine
Dwelt a miner forty niner,
And his daughter Clementine
Light she was and like a fairy,
And her shoes were number nine,
Wearing boxes, without topses,
Sandals were for Clementine.
Drove she ducklings to the water
Ev'ry morning just at nine,
Hit her foot against a splinter,
Fell into the foaming brine.
Ruby lips above the water,
Blowing bubbles, soft and fine,
But, alas, I was no swimmer,
So I lost my Clementine.
How I missed her! How I missed her,
How I missed my Clementine,
But I kissed her little sister,
I forgot my Clementine.

5. Alouette. This one isn't a lost verse "“ it's more that I had no idea what I was really singing about all of those years: bird dismemberment.

When the blazing sun is gone,
When he nothing shines upon,
Then you show your little light,
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night.

Then the traveller in the dark,
Thanks you for your tiny spark,
He could not see which way to go,
If you did not twinkle so.

In the dark blue sky you keep,
And often through my curtains peep,
For you never shut your eye,
Till the sun is in the sky.

As your bright and tiny spark,
Lights the traveller in the dark,—
Though I know not what you are,
Twinkle, twinkle, little star.

8. Baa Baa Black Sheep. If you feel the need to deplete the rest of the barnyard denizens of their precious goods after you've taken the sheep's wool, you certainly can:
"Cluck, cluck, red hen, have you any eggs?
Yes sir, yes sir, as many as your legs.
One for your breakfast and one for your lunch;
Come back tomorrow and I'll have another bunch.
Moo, moo brown cow, have you milk for me?
Yes sir, yes sir, as tasty as can be.
Churn it into butter, make it into cheese,
Freeze it into ice cream or drink it if you please.
Buzz, buzz busy bee, is your honey sweet?
Yes sir, yes sir, sweet enough to eat.
Honey on your muffin, honey on your cake,
Honey by the spoonful, as much as I can make."

9. A Tisket, A Tasket. You probably know about the green and yellow basket, and you might remember that the person singing the song dropped it. After that, the sordid tale goes like this:

I dropped it, I dropped it
Yes, On the way I dropped it
A little girlie picked it up
And put it in her pocket

She was truckin' on down the avenue,
Without a single thing to do
She was peck-peck-peckin all around
When she spied it on the ground

She took it she took it
my little yellow basket
And if she doesn't bring it back
I think that I shall die

Then you "build it up with bricks and mortar" and sing that verse. But "bricks and mortar will not stay, will not stay, will not stay."

This is followed by "build it up with iron and steel," but "iron and steel will bend and bow."

So then we get extravagant and decide to "build it up with silver and gold," and, obviously, "silver and gold will be stolen away."

There are no other materials available, apparently, so we're going to stick with the precious metals and "set a man to watch all night, watch all night, watch all night." The question then is, "Suppose the man should fall asleep, fall asleep, fall asleep?" and the answer is, "Give him a pipe to smoke all night, smoke all night, smoke all night."

So there you have the solution to every crumbling bridge in the world: build it with silver and gold, pay a guy to watch it and let him smoke so he stays awake for his shift. Sound good?

So tell me: how many of you know the extended versions of these songs, and how many of you are just as surprised as I was?

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Also on Mental Floss:

DID YOU KNOW? Marlon Brando hated memorizing lines so much that he posted cue cards everywhere to help him get through scenes.
He even asked for lines to be written on an actress's posterior. (That request was denied.)